I have already agreed to sponsor a few senior thesis and internship students for the 2017-2018 academic years. I am willing to sponsor a few more senior thesis or internship students.

I am willing to sponsor students working on two quite different types of senior thesis/internship projects for the 2017-2018 academic year. Please contact me for more information if you are interested.

1. Chris Lay (Norris Center) and I are looking for students to work on a collaborative project with the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History teaching and revising their K-2nd grade animal adaptations curriculum. This internship requires that a student have some coursework or experience in teaching elementary school students. Speaking Spanish is a plus. There are various opportunities for senior internships related to either environmental education or collections projects with the SC Museum of Natural History.

2. The Younger Lagoon Reserves staff and I have a few ideas for restoration research or outreach projects. The prior requirements for doing a restoration-related internship or thesis with me are passing ENVS 160: Restoration Ecology with a B or better, and having demonstrated a strong work ethic and interest in Restoration Ecology by doing a 2-unit internship with a UCSC or off-campus restoration group.

Please note that completing a senior thesis or internship is an invaluable learning experience, particularly if you are interested in research and considering going to graduate school. Likewise, doing a senior internship is a great way to get experience working with and writing a professional document for an agency. Doing a senior thesis or internship, however, is a lot more work than either ENVS 190 (capstone) or ENVS 196 (senior seminar), which take one quarter. Senior theses and internships require a minimum of two quarters (and often more) commitment to have the time to design and complete an experiment/project, analyze/compile results, and write up your thesis/project. They also require a high level of commitment and organization skills on your part as it is less structured than a class; you will need to set your timetable and meet it. But, like with anything, the more you put into, the more you get out of it.

Doing research or an independent project is exciting, but can also be extremely frustrating. These are research and restoration projects that have not been done before. You will inevitably have to push yourself into areas where you do not have experience, and at some point you will end up having to redo some work as you go through the learning process. But, this is all part of doing an independent project, and you will gain invaluable skills in the process. That said you need to have the background coursework to be able to do the project you propose, and I may suggest specific coursework for your project. For example, students who work on projects with an experimental or monitoring component should have taken at least one upper division course with an experimental laboratory component (e.g. Field Methods, Plant Ecology) or have some fieldwork experience.

Working with senior internship and thesis students is one of my favorite parts of my job, and I spend a great deal of time with each student. This means I have high expectations for you. I expect you to work independently, come to meetings prepared, and complete tasks by the times we agree upon. You should also be comfortable accepting constructive criticism. I make the time and energy to give you feedback to help your improve your scientific skills.

If you're interested in working with me on an independent project then make an appointment to come talk to me during my office hours. If you have your own ideas of a project that falls within my expertise that’s great. If you don’t (the case for most students), I prefer you work on a project related to some of my ongoing research projects or restoration projects with which I am involved, so you can build on an existing information base and your work will contribute to a larger effort. Most students do projects on the grassland and wetland restoration at Younger Lagoon Reserve (YLR). If you want to work with me on a tropical forest restoration studyin Costa Rica, this requires extensive advance planning, the ability to speak Spanish, and raising/providing some of your own research funds.

To be able to devote sufficient time to each student, I sponsor a limited number of students, given my other time commitments.So, the sooner you talk to me the better.I give first priority to those students who have done internships with me before and have demonstrated a strong work ethic and academic record.